The High Priestess (La Papesse): meaning of tarot arcanum II

In brief: number, names and keywords

The High Priestess is the second arcanum, with the same number in Marseille and in Rider-Waite. Her name changed with Waite: from “Papesse”, which evokes a woman invested with a religious office, to “High Priestess”, more neutral, which suggests a guardian of a temple. Both name the same place in the tarot.

Some older authors also call her “Juno” (the queen of the Roman gods), but this name is less common today.

Keywords: inner life, intuition, silence, discreet knowledge, patience, mystery.

The image in the Marseille tarot

In Marseille, the Papesse is a woman seated facing us, wearing a high headdress close to a tiara or a crown, covered by a veil that falls over her shoulders. She wears a cloak and a dress in two main colours (often blue and red), which mirror those of the Pope.

On her knees lies a large book, open or half-open depending on the edition. She rests a hand on it or uses it as a support. Her face is calm, her gaze directed forward or towards the book. The background is plain, sometimes just a curtain: attention concentrates on the book and on her bearing.

The image in the Rider-Waite-Smith deck

In the Rider-Waite-Smith deck, the High Priestess sits between two pillars, one black marked with the letter B, the other white marked with J (Boaz and Jachin, from the Temple of Solomon). Between them stretches a veil decorated with pomegranates and palm leaves, behind which water can be glimpsed.

She wears a blue robe, a crown with two horns framing a disc (a full moon), a cross with equal arms on her chest, and a crescent moon at her feet. She holds a scroll bearing the letters TORA, partly hidden under her cloak: a knowledge revealed only in part.

Symbolism of the elements in the image

These are the details that come up most often in traditional readings. They are lines of interpretation, not official definitions.

• The book (Marseille) or the scroll (Waite): knowledge. It is guarded, sometimes closed: not everything is said, not everything is shown.
• The veil: what separates the visible from the invisible. The card keeps a secret, but invites us to look behind it.
• The black and white pillars (Waite): the opposites (shadow and light, passive and active) that the figure holds in balance.
• The pomegranate: a fruit with many seeds: fertility, inner richness, mystery.
• The crescent moon: intuition, cycles, the part of ourselves that changes phase.
• The cool colours: blue, white and shades of water: calm, depth, introspection.

Upright meaning

Upright, the High Priestess invites us to listen rather than to speak. Traditionally she suggests intuition, a wisdom that cannot be proven, the ability to keep a secret and to wait. She also evokes quiet study, reading, learning in silence, the deep work that does not yet show.

In a spread she often suggests that an answer is already within you, or that a piece of information is still hidden: it is better not to rush a decision. She is a card of patience, associated with night and the moon.

Reversed: two schools of reading

School 1: the opposite. Reversed, the High Priestess speaks of excessive withdrawal, a heavy secret or coldness: one keeps to oneself what should be said, shuts oneself up in knowledge without sharing it, or cuts oneself off from one’s intuition.

School 2: a block. Inner listening is there, but blurred: too much noise, too many demands, difficulty trusting oneself. The card then invites us to find some silence again. Many tarot readers, moreover, read only upright cards.

In common areas of reading

The tarot does not say what will happen: it offers images for reflection. Here, in symbolic terms, is what this card may bring up depending on the theme of your question.

• Personal reflection: time for oneself, a journal, reading, inner listening. Possible question: what do I already know, without having yet put it into words?
• Relationships: a discreet bond, a reserve, a modesty; or information that has not yet been shared. The card invites us to listen to the other person without trying to see through them.
• Work: training, research, preparatory work, a job that requires confidentiality. Nothing needs rushing: maturing comes before action.
• Money: more an invitation to discretion and observation before deciding. It predicts nothing and does not replace the advice of a finance professional.

Combinations with neighbouring cards

A card is rarely read on its own: its neighbour nuances it. Here are a few common pairings, to be taken as starting points.

• The Magician (Juggler): what is said and what is kept: speaking up at the right moment.
• The Empress: inner life and expression: what matured in silence ends up taking shape.
• The Hermit: two cards of withdrawal: a chosen time of solitude, favourable to reflection.
• The Moon: intuition and the zone of shadow: take care not to confuse a presentiment with fear.
• The Hierophant (Pope): inner wisdom and transmitted teaching: two sources of wisdom to be compared.

To learn how to combine cards, try the three-card spread. To place this card among the 22 Major Arcana, see our guide to the Major Arcana.

Keyword of the day, question and practice

Keyword of the day: Listen. For the day, give yourself a moment without screens or background noise, and simply note what passes through you. You do not need to draw any conclusion from it.

Question to ask yourself: What do you already know, deep down, without having yet put it into words?

Writing (10 minutes). Write a letter you will not send, to yourself, about what you feel without being able to explain it. Read it again the next day and underline two sentences that surprise you.

Short meditation. Sit in the half-light, the card in front of you. Imagine yourself between the two pillars of Waite’s version, behind the veil. Breathe, letting an image, a word or a memory rise, without trying to interpret it.

History and variants of the card

The very first Italian tarots of the 15th century already show a “Papessa”, but her purpose remains debated. For some historians, including Michael Dummett, she may refer to Manfreda de Pirovano, elected “popess” by a Lombard sect in 1300; others think of the medieval legend of Pope Joan. These are hypotheses: none has been established with certainty.

In 1781, Court de Gébelin saw in her an Egyptian figure (Isis); 19th-century occultists made her a guardian of knowledge. In the 20th century, English-speaking tarots followed Waite: the Popess became the High Priestess, without a papal tiara, associated with the Moon and with the Shekhinah (the feminine divine presence in Jewish mystical tradition), according to his interpretation.

You will therefore find very different cards: a pope with a tiara, a veiled priestess, a wise woman surrounded by books, sometimes a “Juno” version. The common thread everywhere is the seated woman, the book or scroll, and the image of silence.

Frequently asked questions

Also read

The meanings mentioned belong to tradition and symbolism. They are neither promises of results nor medical advice. Back to The 22 Major Arcana, card by card.